Solid Cedar House
Built as 2-storey semi-detached houses with minor variations and having a Medium pitch hipped roof covered with plain tiles.
In Dundee, orders were given in 1938 for 500 solid red cedar houses. The entire 500 houses were expected to cost £214,241 or an average of £424 each, which varied in line with the sizes ordered.
There were three different sizes as set out below:
- 92 five-roomed
- 248 four-roomed
- 160 three-roomed, all with kitchenette and bathroom.
All were fitted with a kitchenette and bathroom for comfort.
The External walls are clad in horizontal cedar boarding up to the level of the lowest first floor window sill (depending upon design) after which the boards are laid vertically and trimmed with cover strips.
Design variations include upper or lower storey shallow square bays or no bay at all. Some properties have a total of four windows to the front elevation, whilst others have an additional, tall and narrow 5th central window.
All properties have a shallow, flat canopy over the front door.
The vast majority of these properties were ordered by Dundee Council, Scotland, between 1938 & 1940. Many of these properties have since been sold privately under the right to buy scheme.
As of 2017 the Dundee local authority owned the following Solid Cedar properties:
| Street Name | Council Owned | Google Streetview Link |
|---|---|---|
| ALLOWAY TERRACE | 35 | Google Streetview |
| AMOUR PLACE | 1 | Google Streetview |
| BALLOCHMYLE DRIVE | 2 | Ballochmyle Drive |
| BIRKS TERRACE | 3 | Google Streetview |
| BLACKLOCK CRESCENT | 54 | Google Streetview |
| DOON TERRACE | 3 | Google Streetview |
| FOUNTAINBLEAU DRIVE | 19 | Google Streetview |
| GLENCONNOR DRIVE | 27 | Google Streetview |
| LOMOND PLACE | 6 | Google Streetview |
| MOSSGIEL CRESCENT | 45 | Google Streetview |
| MOSSGIEL PLACE | 34 | Google Streetview |
| PITKERRO DRIVE | 35 | Google Streetview |
| PITKERRO ROAD | 27 | Google Streetview |
| RIDDELL TERRACE | 7 | Google Streetview |
| ROWANTREE CRESCENT | 13 | Google Streetview |
Historical References
Timber Housing Scheme, Dundee.
The houses were built onto a concrete strip and vented masonry wall base. These houses were manufactured at the Solid Cedar Homes factory near Hull and shipped to Dundee in kit and panel form. The ships were laden with timber for 540 houses, which were to be delivered and erected by the 1st of January.
An elaborate schedule was drawn up by the contractors, Solid Cedar Homes Ltd, Hull, containing the dates for every detail of the building programme. A fixed chart was created with near military precision, outlining very stage of the build, from shipping to completion, and even outlined which tasks could still be completed during inclement weather conditions.
The timber was slated to arrive in Dundee during the last week of October. The erection of the walls was to commence in the middle of November, and the first house was expected to be completed by the beginning of January.
The remainder of the houses were to be built in progressive stages.
- 50 would be completed by the beginning of February.
- 90 early in March.
- 100 during April.
- 150 during June
- 150 during July
The entire scheme, according to the schedule, was to be completed by the beginning of July.
As each block of houses was completed, it was ready for immediate occupation. The risk of delays caused by bad weather was considered less likely as the construction of the timber houses could still go ahead whereas the construction of a typical brick house would need to stop. Frost has major implications to brick builds, but it does not hinder the building of timber houses at all.
The prospect was that by early summer of 1939, the chosen area would have completely lost its current rural aspect and become a fully functioning residential area in a very short time indeed.
At the time of writing, a local estate agent has published a for sale listing containing photographs taken from the interior of the property. The PDF file can be viewed here Your Move Solid Cedar house sales brochure
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